The Lions have yet to make the transaction official, but offensive lineman Darren Keyton is heading to injured reserve.
“He’s not going to be back this year,” coach Jim Caldwell said Saturday. “I think the doctors have him in the last phase of his evaluation, but he has a pretty significant knee injury.”
Keyton suffered the right knee injury in the second quarter of Thursday’s exhibition win over the New York Jets. He needed the assistance of a trainer to walk off the field.
Caldwell described the injury as “a patellar tendon issue.” A ruptured patellar tendon typically requires several months of recovery.